"Fre…"

"Fre…"

Slowly, Calus descended, his eyes unfocused, his legs trembling, but the ground steady beneath him as he touched the sand.

"Fre…" he called out once more, feeling intense pain strike his heart.

Best buddies? Brothers? A lifetime of friendship…

The past life memories came to him. getting drunk, going to brothels, doing crazy things… and yet, Lisa… Lisa did this.

Calus clenched his fist as he stood up.

"We need to talk," Calus said, releasing his king-level aura. Instantly, hundreds of kilometers fell within his reach as he looked for Fre, but he was nowhere to be found.

Picking a direction, Calus instantly disappeared, breaking the limit of sound.

Boom…

A sonic boom erupted as he moved, easily crossing the destroyed town and heading toward the outskirts.

This went on for a few days as he searched in all four directions, covering a region thousands of miles in size just to find Fre.

In those moments, Calus thought about what he would say when he met Fre, how their meeting would unfold.

He even mentally planned everything, yet with each passing minute, his hope diminished as he couldn't find Fre anywhere.

"Fre!!!!" Calus shouted, releasing his aura. His mind was almost a mess as he gritted his teeth.

Still, no one came out, and Fre was nowhere to be found.

Calus clenched his fists and finally gave up.

Soon he left, moving out of the Eastern Continent. He still worked for the royal family, so he couldn't just leave at any time or stay gone too long.

Calus paid the transportation fee as the beast took off, its roar shaking the sky.

At the corner of the transportation station, Fre emerged from the shadows.

"As I

thought, you don't even care much. You only felt the pain I caused when I destroyed your parents' graves, but that is far from my goal. Every day of your life, you will wish to die but I won't grant it," Fre said, clenching his fists as he walked alongside the huge crowd.

In a few moments, his figure disappeared into the crowd.

On the beast, Calus looked back in Fre's direction but saw no one.

"I must be hallucinating," Calus muttered, sensing Fre for a moment, yet no one was there.

---

Central Continent.....

At the Royal Palace, a young man was being welcomed by dukes and generals.

It was no secret to the upper echelon that the king had cultivated a group of prodigies, and of course, the number-one talent, Calus, would definitely be there.

In a large hall full of delicious food and some dancing women, Calus sat among the dukes and generals as they toasted.

"A toast to the number-one expert of our kingdom!" a duke laughed heartily, his beard trembling as his fat tummy moved up and down.

Seeing this, Calus forced a smile and replied modestly, "Ah… a toast to the great kingdom of Surella." He smiled as he answered, and they drank their wine.

Calus preferred being on the battlefield to staying even a moment with these aristocrats.

They were greedy and wanted nothing more than power. They were all cunning old foxes, always scheming, while Calus preferred straightforward people like Fre.

Calus' mood changed as he realized he was thinking of Fre again.

He took a small wine cup and drank it instantly.

Pah…

A soft sound echoed as Calus stood and clapped his fist and palm together.

"I thank the dukes, generals, and other aristocrats for this meal, but it's late, and I have just returned from the Eastern Continent. I would like to rest," Calus said, and the aristocrats all smiled.

Of course, they knew sleeping or resting was a lie. A Diamond Realm expert could go for months without rest and be fine let alone a King-Level expert like Calus.

He just wanted to leave, but they knew they couldn't rush him, so they all drank their wine.

"No problem, Lord Calus. We are all aware of the great things you did and your little trip," another replied with a smile.

"Yes, we won't bother you anymore. You can go rest," a low-level aristocrat chimed in, and Calus nodded.

"Thank you. Please continue the meal. I won't bother you anymore," Calus muttered as he turned and left.

His eyes lay unfocused as the music and light dimmed when he went outside.

Darkness filled his sight, but as a King-Realm expert, it was as bright as day.

"Heh… isn't my life as dark as this? No happiness, nothing," Calus muttered as he sighed once more and walked to the balcony on the upper level.

The royal palace was anything but unfit for grandeur.

It was huge, taking up thousands of square kilometers.

It was an intricate layer of mansions interlinked together, with thousands of people entering and living there.

Daily meetings were held, and the number of slaves and servants easily numbered in the hundreds, not to mention the soldiers stationed here.

Their auras signified that many were at least Gold Realm experts, with more at the Platinum Realm.

The surroundings were filled with beautifully carved artifacts and relics, signifying the dynasty maintained by the royal family for thousands of years.

On the balcony, darkness stretched as far as the night sky, yet the moonlight cascaded down beautifully.

"Won't you agree that this is beautiful?" a sweet feminine voice asked, lifting one's soul. Calus' thoughts were broken as he looked over.

Beside him stood Mabi, now grown into a young woman. Her beauty was even more striking, her long balcony-length hair flowing like a waterfall.

Her oval face was smooth and spotless, her lips small but pink with a shade of red.

Her eyebrows were slightly long, and her eyes held a glow that seemed to draw one in.

Seeing her, Calus forced a smile and replied,

"Yes, it is beautiful… as beautiful as carrying away one's sorrow and filling one with happiness," Calus said casually. Mabi smiled slightly.

For a moment, Calus lost his breath; her smile felt like a flower blossoming amidst tears in the grass as the sun set… captivating, yet intriguing.

"Yes, you say so, but why are you sad?" Mabi asked, noticing Calus' frozen expression.

Was he that visible, that anyone could see he was sad?

How pathetic.